WichitanWolverine

I have very mixed emotions about today's game. I'm more of an offensive guy so this is definitely biased in that direction, but here are a few of my takeaways:

------Offense---------------------------Gardner will win the Heisman during his Michigan tenure. For a high schooler (you know what I mean) he looked like someone that Vince Young or Troy Smith wishes he were at that age. He has the most pocket presence and patience out of the three.

Forcier was lost on the field. I know he had to play against the #1s and Denard didn't, but overall I was disappointed with his play. I think Denard will start against UConn and as a result Tate will possibly transfer.

Denard looked solid; he was checking down before taking off and lighting the turf on fire. He looked great on his downfield passes. On his RB wheel route/flat passes, he looked pretty bad. I think (or maybe just hope) this can be cleaned up before September. Overall, I think he gives us the true dual threat angle we're looking for.

Our offensive line is BIG. Taylor Lewan is a spitting image of Jake Long; the number is no coincidence. I think the coaches were giving him a ton of reps today because they know he is legit. People that are talking about Michigan being too small are in for a big surprise this fall.

There were a lot of bobbled balls today. I think much of this was due to freshman jitters (as many of these mistakes seemed to be made by freshmen) and can be cleaned up by UConn time.

The RBs didn't impress me, nor did they disappoint. They did their jobs efficiently. That is all.

Our slot receivers, despite being the best duo (Roundtree, Odoms) in the country, had a couple drops. This is the least of my worries. I hope I feel the same way in November.

------Defense----------------------

Emilien was completely out of position on the 97-yd Roundtree TD. It was very, very, very nice to see Roundtree make that play after the Illinois debacle but I can't help but think this bodes poorly for our defense. (Quote stolen from member romeowolv)

Mouton looked great. He was flowing to the ball well and did that much better than he did last year.

JT Floyd lacks athleticism. Yes, we all knew this, but it seemed apparent today. I'm not overly concerned about this since we had some guy nicknamed D-Dub last year who was a shutdown corner despite having BG speed (which isn't something to scoff at).

Kovacs did what Kovacs does: punish runningbacks. He tackled very well, as he always does, but wasn't tested deep (I don't think). On one play, he squared up, met Hopkins with a full head of steam, and made the tackle. Beautiful.

Big Will is the real deal. He is showing that he is worth the 5 stars.

We need Woolfolk. Hopefully our fall-incoming young DBs can help our defensive backfield, but I'm not banking on it. Woolfolk is crucial.

-------Other--------------

We need "Hang-er-up-there" Hagerup. The Rivas diet is not working out for Gibbons.

Our long snapper was bad (Pomarico I believe).

----Recap--------

Again, mixed emotions. It's hard to gauge our team when it's Michigan v. Michigan. I was disappointed by the defense (which was eerily reminiscent of last year) but I hope this was simply because our offensive is insanely athletic.

Whoever our coach is in '11, whether it's RR or Harbaugh, he's in for a real treat with DG. I think he is truly a special player that can revive the halcyon days.

Let's open this up for debate. I can't wait for Magnus to rip this post to shreds.

Also, I just saw our men's gymnastic team won a NC. HAIL.EDIT: Apparently I somehow missed a bad Gardner interception during the game. That may knock him down to the Davey O'Brien (though I doubt it).